In our house, we have a very special shirt.

                                             

It was worn by the cutest little boy in the world.

                                              

A portrait was painted of him while he was wearing it.

                                                

When Shelbi was 3, she wore it.  Then, it was passed on to Bella, and now it’s Soledad’s.  One day it will be little Feeb’s.

Soli loves, loves, loves, this shirt.  It’s soft, comfortable, and just the right size, so generally she wears it to bed.

It even has Daddy’s name on the back.

                                               

Which, could be a problem, if you are a 4 year old with an anger management problem, and you’ve got a 9 year old sister with a “I’m gonna get on your nerves” problem.

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It was about 8 pm, most of the children were in their pajamas, lying around the den watching TV.  The sound on the television was progressively getting louder and louder.  Two little somebodies were playing Littlest Pet Shop, and one Bigger Little Somebody was trying to watch television. But she couldn’t, because she has two sisters who are sometimes loud, who get in the way, and to put it frankly don’t really care that she can’t hear the TV.

Soledad is wearing her favorite pajama shirt, the one with WARWICK ironed on the back.

Shelbi is really wanting Soledad to move out of the way of the television, but she won’t.

It was the perfect storm of events.  No good could come of this.

Shelbi:  Soledad!  Move out of the way.

Soledad: Nothing. I think I heard a pin drop.

Shelbi: I SAID MOVE SOLEDAD!!!!!!
 
Soledad: Again nothing. . . . .but birds tweeting in a nearby tree.

A light bulb goes off in Shelbi’s head. A moment of utter brilliance.

Shelbi:  Warwick, can you get out of the way?  Warwick, you-who. . . .Warwick.

Soledad looks around, wondering who the heck Shelbi is talking to, and then it occurs to her that she is wearing her most “favoritess” shirt.  The one with Daddy’s name on the back.  I think that **** is talking to me.

Soledad whips around, with a darted glare in her eye, “MY. NAME. IS. NOT. WARWICK. IT. IS. SOLEDAD. STOP. CALLING. ME. WARWICK!” Soledad doesn’t drop her gaze, she just slowly holds her position daring for any challenger to tell her otherwise.

Shelbi looks at her smiling, shakes her head and says, “What are you talking about WARWICK?  It says it right there on your shirt Warwick. Why are you yelling at me Warwick?”

And then the flood gates opened.

“Mooooommmmmmeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!! Maaaahhhhhhmeeeee!” Soledad calls, as she runs into my bedroom.  “Shelbi’s calling me Warwick, my names not Warwick, it’s Soledad!  That’s a boys name. . . I’m not a booooyyyyyyy!!”  She protests as she wipes the snot from her nose.

Quickly, I whisper into her ear, there isn’t time for many instructions as Shelbi will round the corner at any minute.

“Listen Soli.  We all know your name isn’t Warwick.  That’s a boys name, and you’re a girl.  Who cares what Shelbi says just ignore her.” I tell her as I’m trying to shove her back into the den.

“Hey there Warwick!” Shelbi grins.

“Well, ummmmm, Mommy said. . . . .ummmmmm. . . .” and then, there was a slight shift, a creak and then a jostle, as the wheels began to turn in her head. Soledad finally received one of the many graces of childhood.  The Grace of how to be a smarty pants.

“Well, Shelbi, I mean Nicole! Stop calling me Warwick, Niiicccoooollle. Nicole, Nicole, Nicole! Nicole, Nicole, Nicole. Whatcha doin’ Nicole?  Leave me alone Nicole!” and she went on and on and on.

And I gotta tell you, I’ve never been so proud of that kid in my life.  That kid, she’s gonna be alright. Way to stand up for yourself and use your noggin to get out of a pickle, Soledad.  You have been given a gift.  Use it well.

                                              

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So, if you haven’t figured it out yet.  I have plenty of Turkeys and Meatballs that live with me in my house. Some days they are more Turkey-ish, other days their brains are more like meatballs.  On this day, we had a combination of both.

So what’s up for dinner?  A super easy  and delicious, stick to your ribs Turkey Meatball Sub that will satisfy the Smartiest Pants your house has to offer.

Eat Up!!!

Quick Turkey and Meatball Sub Sandwich

Ingredients:

1 TB Oil
1 onion, chopped
1 pound lean ground turkey meat
1 tsp. Worcestershire
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup bread crumbs
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and pepper
28 oz prepared Marinara sauce
Mozzarella or Provolone Slices
Soft Whole Wheat Hoagie Bread  ( you could make sliders for the kids with Potato Rolls, Hawaiian Rolls or whatever you like)

Directions:

1. In a skillet (that has a lid), cook onions on medium heat, until translucent, about 5 minutes.
2. While the onions are cooking, mix turkey, Worcestershire, egg, bread crumbs, garlic, salt and pepper.  Roll turkey mixture into 1 inch size meatballs and place in skillet with the onions.
3. Cook meatballs for 1-2 minutes and then turn over and cook another minute longer.  Add marinara sauce, cover with the lid, and let cook 20 minutes.
4. Place hot meatballs on the bread, top with cheese. Serve with a green salad and these oven fries.